4 charged after human remains found inside suitcase, trash bags in Kensington

Caregiver, relatives charged in suitcase murder case in Kensington

Four people are facing charges after the remains of Vincent Good were found in a suitcase in Kensington, according to the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office. The suspects, including Good’s girlfriend, are awaiting arraignment.

PHILADELPHIA - Four people have been taken into custody after human remains were discovered inside a suitcase and trash bags in an alleyway in Kensington last week.

What we know:

Officers from the Philadelphia Police Department were called to the 600 block of Hilton Street around 9:30 a.m. Friday. 

A witness who police say was searching for scrap material found human remains inside a suitcase discarded in an alleyway. 

Police later found two industrial trash bags containing additional remains in "an early stage of decomposition."

The Philadelphia Medical Examiner's Office later identified the remains as 53-year-old Vincent Good. 

They determined his cause of death to be from multiple gunshot wounds, according to police.

Four people have been taken into custody in connection to Good's death, including a 53-year-old, Liza Ridley, who has been charged with murder and other crimes. Bernadette Ridley, a 55-year-old woman was also charged with abuse of a corpse and related offenses. 

Ridley’s daughter, Liza Robinson, 32, and her boyfriend, Gnaeus Daniels, 33, are each charged with tampering with evidence, obstruction of justice, and conspiracy, according to the Philadelphia District Attorney's Office. 

Dig deeper:

4 arrested after human remains found in suitcase in Philadelphia

Philadelphia officials have announced arrests and charges against four people after human remains were found inside of a suitcase. Investigators say the case was broken in large part due to witnesses who spoke up. 

Police say Ridley confessed to shooting Good in the head after initially lying to officers. Investigators say the daughter provided a ride share used to transport the suitcase containing Good’s remains, and both Robinson and Daniels admitted to cleaning the property and removing the mattress. 

A ride share driver who transported the suitcase noticed a "horrible smell" and reported the incident to police after seeing news coverage, which helped lead to the arrests. Investigators believe the driver dropped off Liza Ridley in Kensington, where the suitcase was found.

What they're saying:

"Vincent Good was a partial amputee. His hand had been amputated above the wrist and his left leg had been amputated.  said Assistant District Attorney Sidney Pope. "That is important. in that we did find, in terms of the bag, what was originally discovered was a was the remains of an individual, obviously not a complete, body. As it turns out, those had been surgically removed."

Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner said, "That Lyft driver came forward. Two Philadelphians who had nothing direct to do with the case, but cared enough about their community and their neighbors, and cared about people they never knew came forward. And that is how the Philadelphia Police Department, of course, with our assistance throughout the entire process, was able to solve this case."

Detectives are still investigating the possibility of a financial motive, as they say Ridley was Good’s caregiver and he was receiving Social Security benefits.

What we don't know:

Investigators have not confirmed the exact motive for the killing or how long Good had been dead before his remains were found. 

Authorities are still looking into financial aspects and possible abuse allegations.